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Thursday, May 15, 2014

Farewell to the Dark Genius

The art world lost a great artist this week with the passing of Swiss surrealist H.R. Giger. The man who created art from our dreams and nightmares, was perhaps best known for creating the horrific aliens for the beloved sci-fi horror franchise.

McQueen shoes and a model of the original alien.

I almost feel it can go without saying that my household is a huge fan of his work. So much so we have "Spell 1," a limited edition resin sculpture, hanging in a bedroom.

One of the things that always impressed me about Giger’s work was his ability to inspire others. His work was emulated, but also taken by artists and interpreted for their own work, citing him as the obvious influence.

This is perhaps best (and most obviously) illustrated with Alexander McQueen’s Alien shoes from his 2010 line. With Giger’s approval Polish fashion designer Malgorzata Dudek created a line of clothing with Giger prints on it.

Dudek's Alien inspired line.

In 2013 Georgia Hardinge created a line of sculptural dresses inspired by the dark art, Danzig featured a woman in a Giger costume in the "How the Gods Kill" video, and even Beyonce has worn costumes inspired by his brilliant vision.

Within the traditional art world I have no doubt Giger influenced countless artists in various mediums, including film. I’m not sure many other artists can claim that kind of influence over so different mediums.

Let’s hope we continue to see fashion and other works inspired by him for many years to come so his legacy and influence on art and fashion may live on.